LOCATION MELLOTT IN
Established Series
Rev. TRZ-TJE
11/2021
MELLOTT SERIES
The Mellott series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in loess and in the underlying glaciofluvium and loamy till. Mellott soils are on till plains. Slope ranges from 0 to 2 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 914 mm (36 inches), and mean annual temperature is about 10.0 degrees C (50 degrees F).
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Mollic Hapludalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Mellott silt loam, on a convex, 1 percent slope in a cultivated field at an elevation of about 203 meters (665 feet) above mean sea level. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated.)
Ap--0 to 23 cm (9 inches); dark brown (10YR 3/3) silt loam, brown (10YR 5/3) dry; moderate medium granular structure; friable; very strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. [18 to 23 cm (7 to 9 inches) thick]
Bt1--23 to 33 cm (9 to 13 inches); brown (10YR 4/3) silt loam; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; friable; common very fine vesicular pores; common distinct dark brown (10YR 3/3) clay films on faces of peds; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary.
Bt2--33 to 71 cm (13 to 28 inches); dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silty clay loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common very fine vesicular pores; common distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. [Combined thickness of the Bt horizon is 33 to 76 cm (13 to 30 inches).]
2Bt3--71 to 84 cm (28 to 33 inches); brown (7.5YR 4/4) loam; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; firm; common very fine vesicular pores; common distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) clay films on faces of peds; 5 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary.
2Bt4--84 to 107 cm (33 to 42 inches); dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) sandy clay loam with pockets of sandy loam; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; common very fine tubular pores; common distinct dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) clay films on faces of peds; 10 percent gravel; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. [Combined thickness of the 2Bt horizon is 25 to 51 cm (10 to 20 inches).]
3Bt5--107 to 119 cm (42 to 47 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) fine sandy loam; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; firm; common very fine tubular pores; common distinct very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) clay films on faces of peds; 5 percent gravel; slightly acid; clear smooth boundary. [0 to 20 cm (0 to 8 inches) thick]
3BCt--119 to 127 cm (47 to 50 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) fine sandy loam; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; friable; common distinct very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) clay films on faces of peds; 3 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline; clear smooth boundary. [0 to 20 cm (0 to 8 inches) thick]
4C--127 to 152 cm (50 to 60 inches); yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) loam; massive but has well defined horizontal and fairly well defined vertical fracture planes which define plates 5 to 13 cm (2 to 5 inches) horizontally and 1 to 4 cm (.5 to 1.5 inches) vertically; friable; 10 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline.
TYPE LOCATION: Tippecanoe County, Indiana; about 2 miles south of Lafayette; 740 feet east and 425 feet north of the southwest corner of sec. 17, T. 22 N., R. 4 W.; USGS Romney, Indiana topographic quadrangle; lat. 40 degrees 20 minutes 46.3 seconds N. and long. 86 degrees 54 minutes 4.2 seconds W., NAD 27; UTM Zone 16, 508393 easting and 4466190 northing, NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Thickness of the loess: 56 to 102 cm (22 to 40 inches)
Depth to the base of the argillic horizon: 102 to 152 cm (40 to 60 inches)
Depth to carbonates: 102 to 152 cm (40 to 60 inches)
Ap or A horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 2 or 3
Chroma: 2 or 3
Texture: silt loam
Reaction: very strongly acid to neutral, depending on liming history
Bt horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 3 to 6
Texture: silt loam or silty clay loam
Clay content: 18 to 35 percent
Reaction: very strongly acid to moderately acid
2Bt horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 3 to 5
Chroma: 2 to 6; pedons with chroma of 2 have value of 3 and the colors are not considered to be associated with wetness
Texture: loam or sandy clay loam
Clay content: 20 to 27 percent
Sand content: averages 20 to 65 percent
Rock fragment content: 3 to 10 percent
Reaction: strongly acid to slightly alkaline
3Bt or 3BCt horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 3 to 5
Chroma: 3 to 6
Texture: loam or fine sandy loam
Clay content: 12 to 20 percent
Silt content: averages less than 50 percent
Sand content: 35 to 65 percent
Rock fragment content: 3 to 10 percent
Reaction: strongly acid to slightly alkaline, but ranges to moderately alkaline in the 3BCt horizon
4C horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5
Chroma: 3 or 4
Texture: loam
Clay content: 10 to 18 percent
Sand content: 30 to 52 percent
Rock fragment content: 3 to 10 percent
Moist bulk density: 1.50 to 1.75 g/cc
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 40 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Batavia,
Bowes,
Churchtown,
Deroin,
Downs,
Ella,
Festina,
Frankville,
Gladek,
Greenbush,
Harvard,
Hersey,
Knox,
Luana,
Mannon,
Massbach,
Mt. Carroll,
Myrtle,
Nasset,
Newhouse,
Oak Center,
Watkins,
Waubeek, and
Yutan series. Batavia soils are deeper than 102 cm (40 inches) to horizons containing more than 20 percent sand. Bowes and Luana soils have more than 15 percent rock fragments in the lower part of the series control section. Churchtown and Festina soils have less than 35 percent sand in the lower part of the argillic horizon. Deroin soils have hue redder than 10YR in the upper part of the argillic horizon. Downs, Ella, Greenbush, Newhouse and Oak Center soils do not have carbonates within a depth of 152 cm (60 inches). Frankville and Nasset soils have a lithic contact within a depth of 152 cm (60 inches). Gladek soils have less than 3 percent rock fragments in the lower part of the series control section. Harvard, Knox, Mannon, Mt. Carroll, and Yutan soils average more than 50 percent silt in the lower part of the argillic horizon or solum. Hersey soils are deeper than 152 cm (60 inches) to the base of the argillic horizon. Massbach, Watkins, and Waubeek soils have more than 20 percent clay in the lower part of the argillic horizon. Myrtle soils have a subhorizon with hue redder than 7.5YR in the matrix or as ped faces in some part of the argillic horizon.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Mellott soils are on till plains of Wisconsinan age. Slope ranges from 0 to 2 percent. The soils formed in 56 to 102 cm (22 to 40 inches) of loess and in the underlying glaciofluvium and loamy till. The till is friable and contains strata of coarser textures in many places. In places, sandy and or gravelly layers more than 91 cm (36 inches) thick are at depths of 2.4 to 3.6 meters (8 to 12 feet). In most areas, this soil is on the lower lying portions of the till plains adjacent to terraces and floodplains. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 889 to 965 mm (35 to 38 inches). Mean annual temperature ranges from 10.0 to 11.1 degrees C (50 to 52 degrees F).
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are
Millbrook,
Tecumseh and
Toronto soils. The somewhat poorly drained Millbrook and Toronto soils are on lower lying landform positions. The well drained Tecumseh soils are on similar landform positions but have a mollic epipedon.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained. Potential for surface runoff is negligible or low. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high. Permeability is moderate.
USE AND VEGETATION: Almost all areas are used to grow corn and soybeans. A few areas are used for hayland, pasture or woodland. Native vegetation is mixed prairie grasses and scattered hardwoods.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRAs 110 and 111D in west-central Indiana. The type location is in MLRA 111D. The series is of moderate extent.
SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Tippecanoe County, Indiana, 1950.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon (mollic intergrade): from the surface to a depth of 23 cm (Ap horizon).
Argillic horizon: from a depth of 23 to 119 cm (Bt, 2Bt, 3Bt horizons).
Representative NASIS data mapunit for this pedon is DMU ID 153056 in MO 11.
ADDITIONAL DATA: Lab data available for this pedon, S86IN157-7, from Purdue University.
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.